Saving a Wolf
by Flipzfish
Summary: The origin story of how Maisie Rowan (Red Riding Hood) and Will Lupus (Wolf) became detectives for the police department. Maisie had never trusted Will's new girlfriend, but now faced with a partner who doesn't want to talk to her, an overprotective best friend, and some gingerbread, she must find a way to save her friend without losing him forever.
1. Stalking a Friend

Maisie glared at the petite blonde that sat across the cafe from her. Miss Gwyneth "Please call me Gwen" Taylor sat with her pixie nose stuck in the air and her carefully manicured hand resting lightly on the crook of the man's elbow sitting across from her. She watched as the blonde leaned further over the table, straining her already stretched sweater further as her generous chest threatened to spill over the top. Maisie had been watching Gwen for weeks now, but other than her sweeter than strawberry jam attitude, she could find nothing that would account for the way her stomach rolled watching Gwen and her date together. 'Maybe it's just her nauseatingly sweet personality that causes my stomach to heave,' She mused to herself. But no, no matter how many times she had tried to convince herself that Gwen was a nice girl and posed no threat, she felt sickening dread build in her gut as she watched Gwen become closer to her partner over the last couple of weeks. Having no evidence against her, Will chose to ignore the warnings Maisie had pleaded with him to consider. She recalled the argument they had just had this morning before he had stormed out of her office.

" _You don't like her because she's everything that you are not," Will cursed._

" _No! She's a snake, just look at her," she replied gesturing to the blonde, who was waiting just outside the office's closed door._

" _What evidence do you have?"_

" _She's dating you," Maisie shot back._

" _Don't behave like a kid about this."_

" _Who are you supposed to trust more- me or her? I'm your partner. The one who's always got your back. And who is she? Some dumb, blonde parakeet who doesn't-"_

" _She's a whole lot less judgmental than you," Will interrupted._

" _She's bad news! Can't you see that she is using you?" Maisie pleaded._

" _She's not. I finally have a good thing in my life, let me have it!"_

 _She couldn't respond. Will had been through so much that he deserved his chance at happiness, but not with her. Anyone but her. Her gut tied in knots with just the thought of Gwen's hands on him. Nothing prompted the instant dislike that Maisie had for the girl, but she had learned from a young age to trust her gut. And the way her stomach was dancing in her belly, it was trying to tell her something._

" _Will-"_

" _No. I'm done discussing this," He said pushing the chair back from the desk and storming out the door. As he reached for the handle he looked over his shoulder at the brunette sitting behind her desk. "And stay out of my life kid."_

 _The door slammed shut and Maisie watched through the blinds as Will greeted Gwen with a kiss on the cheek. Her stomach gave another heave of protest as he draped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to his body, before walking to the door. Something was wrong about Gwen, and whether Will wanted her help or not, she was not letting him get hurt again._

"Red! Red! Reeeeed! Are you even listening to me?" Alice called waving a hand in front of Maisie's nose, bringing her back to the present.

Sparing one last look at the couple across the room, she turned and looked at her friend. "I'm sorry. What?"

"I was saying that I think that white would get dirty too fast and black is too formal. It's supposed to be a casual date, so I think nude pumps would be the best choice."

Maisie sighed. "He's a guy. Do you think he would even notice the difference? And really, those black heels that you wore to the department dinner last month were cute and made your legs look miles long. And he's a guy. He'll notice that"

"You don't think that he will think I'm too dressed up? I don't want to scare him away because I took our first date too seriously and blow the whole thing up in my face before I even have the-"

"Alice!" Maisie scolded. "Wear your heels and that navy turtleneck dress I made you buy last time we went shopping. And wear your hair like that," She said gesturing to her friend's current hairstyle that consisted of her hair being pulled up into two pigtails and a black kerchief tied as a headband to keep her bangs out of her eyes when she worked. "If he's scared off because you look like a million bucks, then he doesn't deserve you. And you're the queen of first dates; you should be more than prepared now."

"It's not my fault that when I get talking about my job that men get scared," Alice retorted.

"Then maybe it's the way that you happily explain the proper way to dissect a human body over appetizers that does it." Maisie smiled.

Alice stuck her nose in the air. "It's all part of the job, darling" she drawled. "Working with dead things in the lab is what I do."

"Remember that lawyer you dated last year?" Maisie recalled, laughing at the way Alice groaned and dropped her head onto her arms on the table.

"Don't remind me." Alice pleaded.

"We were working on a pretty gruesome case at the time. And if I remember the story right you were detailing the contents of bathtub we had found the victim in, in vivid detail. He was hurling before you even poured the wine."

Alice started hitting her head on the table. "I said, don't remind me."

Maisie was about to reply when she caught sight of the the couple across the room standing up and preparing to leave.

"Hate to break up the pity party, but they're leaving." Maisie urgently whispered to her partner in crime.

"Why are we following them again? I know Wolf. He can take care of himself. And anyways, they look happy," Alice questioned looking up at Maisie. "Didn't he tell you to leave this alone?"

"She's not going to hurt him. Someone asked me to watch out for him and I promised I would. I'm not going to break my promise."

"Who says she's going to hurt him?"

"No one. Nobody can see her for what she is. But I can."

"Have you ever stopped and thought maybe Gwen doesn't mean any harm to Wolf. Maybe there is nothing going on and maybe, just maybe, you're wrong," Alice pushed.

Maisie turned and glared at her. "I'm not. My gut has been trying to tell me something was off about her since the beginning. I've learned to trust that feeling."

"Or maybe," Alice sighed, "You're just jealous because Wolf has opened up to someone other than you. Wolf only talks to you on the force. Everyone knows that. So maybe you just don't like having to share him."

"There's nothing going on between Will and me!" Maisie argued.

"I never said there was. I just said that maybe you're jealous." Alice responded reaching across the table to place her hand on Maisie's arm.

"I'm not. He's my partner and I don't want any harm to come to him. He's been pushed around enough in his life, he doesn't need some stupid blonde to come toy with him, just to discard him later like trash. If he's going to hate me because I want to stop the pain before it happens, so be it. But I won't allow any harm come to him. I made a promise!" Maisie ranted shaking Alice's hand from her arm before pushing herself up from her seat, her body trembling with a rage she didn't understand.

"Maisie-"

"No. I'm done talking about it. I will do this with or without you, but either way, I'm doing it." Maisie interrupted. "Now we have already lost them, so let's go. You have a date with a hot surgeon to get ready for if I remember correctly."

"I do," Alice smiled standing also and linking her arm through Maisie's and directing her towards the door. "And I'm with you, no matter what," she whispered in her friend's ear. 'Because I don't want you getting hurt either,' she added silently to herself.


	2. Cold Shoulder

Alice and Maisie stepped outside Once Upon a Cup Cafe, getting hit with the chill of the crisp autumn wind that pulled at the girl's hair. Tugging her gloves out of her pocket, Maisie jammed her fingers into them and pulled her hat more snuggly on her head.

"Man it's cold out here. This weather is almost colder than your heart Red," Alice teased, burrowing further into her jacket.

"Hey!" Maisie protested. "I'm not cold hearted!"

"Hmmm…" Alice pretended to think, fingers drumming on her chin, eyes closed in some sort of concentration. "You're right, not cold," Alice finally responded. "Just mildly chilly."

Maisie was about to defend herself again, when a hand landed on her shoulder. Reacting on instinct, she swung her elbow into the man's gut, only to have it caught and her arms restrained.

"Are you following me?" The man growled, turning her so that she faced him.

"Says the man who just forcefully restrained me, an officer of this city," Maisie responded.

Releasing her the man took a step back. "Were you?"

"Will. I was just enjoying a lunch with my best friend. If you want something nice to eat, the place just around the corner has the best Mac and cheese I've had."

"Don't play innocent with me. You saw me there." Will growled. "I told you. Stay out of my life."

Maisie rolled her eyes and placed her hand over her heart. "William Lupus. I have done nothing but discuss Alice's upcoming date over lunch. You already told me to get out and you were right. I was sticking my nose where it didn't belong," Maisie scolded.

"You're a horrible liar. You always have been," he retorted. "So you're telling me, that you just so happened to drive across town, to this little hole in the wall cafe, to discuss dates with Alice?"

"It sounds about right. And if I remember correctly, it was you who was telling me how good the food was there. It's only natural that I would want to try it for myself," she responded. "Now if you will let us go, we have a date to prepare for."

"Stay out of it," Will warned turning and walking away.

As soon as he was out of sight Maisie deflated, shaking with the stress the encounter had caused.

"That was some quick thinking on your feet Red," Alice praised, taking her arm and leading her further down the street. "And brave. I wouldn't want to face down a Wolf in a full rage myself, but you did it without so much a flinch."

"I'm shaking like a leaf," Maisie laughed. "And I told the truth. That place does have Mac and cheese to die for."

Alice laughed as she led them up the stairs of an apartment building, unlocking the door she responded. "But in the heat of the battle, no one would have known you were scared."

Entering the house Alice called out. "Diana! Sweetie! Mommy is home!"

"She's a cat. I don't think she is going to respond," Maisie remarked walking in behind her.

"Shh," Alice scolded. "She might hear you. And I don't think she cares what she looks like. She acts like a princess."

"And you treat her like a queen."

"I do not! I just treat her with the respect she demands," Alice giggled making her way into the kitchen, where she threw her keys on the counter. "Oh there you are, my precious baby. Mommy's here. Aren't you a good girl," she cooed to the cat lounging on the sofa across the room.

The cat in question raised a weary head to the sound of her owner's voice. She groggily cracked an eye open, peeking out of slits before resettling her face on her paws. The way the cat held itself, despite the purple dye job of its fur, one could tell that she thought of herself as royalty.

Alice practical pranced to the cat, picking her up and cuddling her against her face, making baby noises at her. Diana looked less than amused with her codling.

"Alice. You've been gone for a couple of hours, not a couple years. The cat doesn't miss you that much," Maisie commented walking over to lounge on the recently vacated couch.

Hugging Diana one last time, Alice released her, placing her on the top of the cat tower that stood next to the sofa. "She did miss me, I could tell," Alice responded, both girls eyeing the cat who had instantly curled up again to go to sleep.

"Sure, of course she did. Now go take a shower, you only have an hour before he's here" Maisie announced, waving her hands in the direction of the bathroom. "Now shoo."

"Fine. But you take good care of her when I'm gone." Alice demanded as she made her way out of the room.

'She's in another room. That cat doesn't even know she's gone' she mused to herself.

Standing up, Maisie started to look around the room, even though she had been there hundreds of times, she never had really looked at the homeowner's eccentric collection of knick knacks. Wandering over to the cluttered bookcase first, she found the shelves to be stuffed with clay vases, vintage china dolls and feathers. On one of the shelves, there was a figurine of a caterpillar, relaxing on a colourful toadstool, smoking a pipe. On the next shelf was an assortment of hats, the biggest being a large, green velvet top hat that was encircled in a black silk scarf and had a card reading 10/6 jammed into it. Moving away from the bookcase, she inspected the pictures that sat on the mantle. Most were of Alice with her arms wrapped around people she didn't know. There were a fair amount of her cat Diana too, but it was the last picture that caught her attention.

The picture was of Maisie and Will, on the first day they became partners. Maisie had been a rookie, fresh out of training when she joined the force and was paired with the large, brooding man everyone called Wolf. Everyone found the pairing to be odd, but the department was short of female officers, so no one brought up any complaints. In the picture Maisie had both her arms wrapped around his waist grinning at the camera, and Will staring down at her with a stern look on his face. She had never seen the picture before, didn't know that it had been taken, and it brought back memories.

 _Officer Rob Erkens stood at Maisie's side as her partner walked across the room to meet them. Will was a large man, built for power and speed. His hair, such a dark brown it was almost black, framed his face in long, shaggy strands. Brown eyes looked her up and down._

' _Espresso, the richest, blackest cup of espresso' she thought to herself as her partner looked her in the eye._

" _Maisie, this here is William Lupus. He will be your partner. Will, this is Maisie Rowan, she's new so play nice," Rob introduced._

 _Wolf stuck out his hand. "You look a little short."_

" _I passed the same physical exam you did, you big oaf. Don't judge me by my size, judge me by my punch," Maisie retorted, shaking the offered hand. His hand was warm and rough, dwarfing her own small hand._

" _I'll hold you too that," he teased releasing her hand. "Your desk is this way," he mentioned, walking off in the direction he bad come from, not once looking back to see if she followed._

 _Before she took after him, she turned to Rob who still stood by her side. "I have to deal with him for how long?" she wondered._

" _You put him his place pretty well, not many people can do that." Rob laughed. "I'm surprised you stood up to him, his looks tend to fend people off."_

 _She smiled. "He might look a little intimidating to others, but he looks like a teddy bear to me. Anyways, I have to go before he comes back to look for me," she replied following in the direction Will had disappeared in._

" _Good luck!" Rob called at her retreating back, receiving only a wave over the shoulder before she too, disappeared around a corner._

 _Maisie wandered through the hallways, looking into every room she passed, noting the contents and adding it to the ever growing map in her mind._

 _Pausing at the entrance of one doorway, she heard voices coming from inside._

" _She's a pipsqueak Alice, I don't believe she actually passed the exams," a man's voice drifted into the hallway._

" _You know as well as I do that they don't allow any favours; she passed that test fair and square," a female's voice responded, presumably this Alice that Will was talking to._

" _She must barely be pushing five two, and it looked like my hands could fit around her waist."_

" _Got a good look, huh?" Alice joked._

" _Any man would, she looked like a kid. Who wears ribbons in their hair anymore anyways," Will answered as Maisie's fingers self-consciously twisted in the red ribbon she had tied in her hair._

" _I bet she looked cute with it," Alice talked back, making the girl in the hallway smile. She liked this lady already._

" _She still doesn't look like she could do much harm. She doesn't even look like she would be willing to break a nail," Will argued._

 _And with that, Maisie pushed her way into the room, cutting short Alice's response and surprising both occupants of the room. Without hesitating, she walked right up to Will, pulled her fist back and let it fly into his nose. He went down like a ton of bricks, clutching his now bleeding nose._

" _You broke my nose!" He cursed from the floor._

 _Alice was laughing so hard she could barely force her next words past her lips. "Looks like your partner packs a punch."_

 _Maisie shook with anger. All her life people had judged her based on her size. Told her what she could and couldn't do. When she first told people she was going to be a police officer they gave her a once over and told her to get her head out of the clouds. And now, even once she passed the tests, her partner didn't even believe she could perform._

" _That was for your disrespect for me. You've known me for all of fifteen minutes and you already are judging me based on my size. I can do my job. Don't worry. Now unless you want me to punch you again, I suggest you get off our sorry ass and lead me to my desk. I have work to do. I would think you do to." Maisie snapped, raising her fist and started counting to three._

" _Looks like you got yourself a fighter here Wolf. She sure looks like she passed the test, she took down you without much effort." Alice laughed._

 _Before Maisie got to three, Wolf was leading her out of the room and back down the hallway she had come, clutching his nose and cursing the whole way._

Maisie picked up the photograph, examining it further and laughed; one could see the bandages wrapped around Wolf's nose if they looked close enough. People had patted her on her back and joked at Will's expense that day when a bleeding Wolf lead a fuming Maisie into the department centre. Many started calling her Red after that because of her fiery temper. The story of how Red defeated the Wolf, still brought chuckles to the office whenever someone brought it up, but never when Will was around, for some reason, he didn't like the story much. Maisie sighed, have the picture one last look before walking back to the couch to await Alice's return.


	3. Christmas Dinner

Alice burst into the room, where Maisie was dozing on the couch, hastily putting an earring in.

"How much longer do I got, Red?" Alice asked walking back out of the room.

Alice's question startled Maisie from her sleep. She reached for the phone, which she had placed on the coffee table in front of her, to check the time.

"Fifteen minutes," she called back, standing up to stretch her arms above her head.

Diana cracked an eye open to peer at the new commotion, causing Maisie to make a face at her. "What are you looking at, fur ball?"

"Stop tormenting my cat," Alice demanded walking back into the room, holding one shoe. "Do you see the other one anywhere?"

While Alice looked around the room, Maisie made her way to the kitchen to find something to eat. Opening a cabinet she found nothing but plates and cups. She opened the next to find it full of boxes and cans. Pulling a box from the shelf, she jumped on the counter and started to eat the cereal, while watching Alice, who was currently on her hands and knees, reaching under the couch.

"Found you!" Alice boasted, pulling a black heel out that was covered in cat hair and dust. "Now how you got there, I have no clue."

Glancing at Maisie she smirked. "Make yourself at home," she said wryly, gesturing to the cereal she had taken from her kitchen.

"I already did," she answered holding up the box.

Alice laughed and walked over holding a piece of folded paper.

"Okay there is only a couple of things you need to know about Diana," Alice started.

"She's a cat, how much do I need to know?" Maisie groaned.

"Oh don't give me that. When you're eating my food, you're subjected to my rules." Alice asserted. "Now the first thing, is that she likes her food warmed. I've pre made the meal, so all you have to do is put it in the oven and bake it to the instructions I've specified on the meal, which is in the fridge."

"Did you make dinner for me? I mean if you made it for the cat, you should make some for me too."

"What do you think you're eating, Red. I hope you enjoy it," Alice shot back. "The second thing is, it is Friday, so it's story night. I've picked out a book and it's sitting on the coffee table. You have to read it to her right before bedtime, which brings me to the third thing."

"Alice. She's a cat, she spends her whole life sleeping, I don't think she knows she has a bedtime," Maisie whined.

"Oh, shush you," Alice warned. "Her bedtime is at seven, so read to her right before that. You then have to turn off the lights in here and not make much noise to let her rest."

"I can't believe I said I would do this. You're gone for a date, not a week long vacation," Maisie moaned, dropping her head into her knees.

There was a knock on the door and both girls looked to it.

"Oh my gosh! He's here!" Alice gushed, dancing across the room she picked Diana up, hugging her to her chest. "See you later, my little snoogums."

Pulling on her newly found shoes she made her way to the door. "Oh," She remembered as she reached for the door. "And keep her away from that pesky Tom who lives in the apartment over. He's no good for her."

With that she opened the door to a man holding flowers.

"For you, Alice," He offered, pushing the flowers towards her.

Taking the presented flowers and disposing of them on the table by the door, she responded, "Why thank you." Placing her hand on his elbow they made their way out of the apartment.

"Good luck," Maisie wished to the closed door. "Guess it's just you and me, cat," she sighed turning to face the cat who lazed on her tower, having gone, once again, to sleep once Alice had left.

Maisie glanced at the list Alice had shoved in her hands before tossing it on the counter. 'She treats her better than a child. It could do with a little less spoiling.' She thought, walking to the door where Alice had abandoned the flowers.

She picked them up and stared at the bushing rose of the buds. Each flower an accusing eye of another bouquet, from another person, and with how he was treating her now, if felt like another world.

 _She opened her door to find Wolf dressed in something rather than his normal jeans and T-shirt. The suit jacket look tailored to the contours of his body, his pants looked as if he had spent the time to iron them and his shoes were glossed perfection. 'I could get use to him in a suit,' Maisie appreciated to herself before speaking to Will himself. "Why don't you dress up nice," she drawled. "I've never seen you wear a tie, so when I said dress up, I thought you would take it as 'wear a clean shirt.'"_

 _Will grunted, shoving flowers into her hands. She took them with a look of surprise. "They're for you. I saw them at a stall walking here and I remembered how you told me you liked coloured roses." He grunted, shoving his hands deep into his pockets._

 _Maisie's eyes shot up to his. "You remember that?" She gasped. She had only told him once, months ago, when her last date had brought her red roses to soften the blow of breaking her heart._

" _You said red was too ordinary," he shrugged. "You ready to go?"_

" _Of course, my Will," she laughed, linking her arm through his, and pulling him down her driveway, dispelling some of the tension between them._

 _By the time they pulled into Maisie's grandmother's place, she had Will smiling. As he parked the car she turned to him, a somber look upon her face. "Thank-you for doing this. I don't think I could face them alone."_

 _He reached over and grabbed her hand that was toying with the hem of the black cocktail dress she had decided to wear. "Always," was his only response._

 _Walking to the house, the snow started to fall, sending a shiver down Maisie's spine. The chill disappeared when Will draped his arm over her shoulders pulling her into him, and warmth bloomed in her stomach when the door opened to her mother's astonished face._

" _Merry Christmas, Mother," Maisie cooly spoke from under the strength of Will's arm._

 _She regarded them with a cold stare. "You didn't say you were bringing company," she finally responded, standing aside to allow them in._

" _Well you said last Christmas, if I didn't change my ways, you didn't want to see me. This is my change."_

 _Her mother stuck her nose in the air. "I only wanted what's best for you," she pronounced, leaving the room._

 _Maisie's shoulders slumped when her mother turned around the corner. "Welcome to the family," she sighed, shrugging out of her jacket._

" _I can see why you don't talk to your parents," Will comforted, taking her jacket and hanging it by the door before removing his own._

 _A bitter laugh pushed its way out of her mouth. "Just wait until you meet my perfect cousin. I just can't compete."_

 _He just shrugged, reached for her hand and placed it on his arm. "We'll face them together," Will declared, leading them into the adjoining room._

 _All eyes were on them as they made their way to the loveseat on the back wall. The only sound in the room, as Will helped Maisie to her seat before taking the place next to her, was the faint Christmas music drifting from some hidden speakers. The occupants in the room- Maisie's mother, her aunt, and her perfect cousin with her husband- all gawked at her appearance._

 _Her aunt was the one to break the silence. "Don't you think it's a bit juvenile wearing ribbons in one's hair, Maisie? You see, my Phoebe stopped wearing them when she was seven."_

 _Maisie's face flushed under the criticism and it was Will who came to her side. "It makes her stand out. It's one of the things I like about her," he declared, reaching over to wrap one of his fingers into her hair ribbons._

 _It was her Aunt's turn to blush, and as she was scrambling for a response, Maisie's mother jumped in. "And who are you exactly? Maisie never even hinted at having a man in her life."_

 _Will sighed and turned to her mother. "Well, I asked her to keep our relationship quiet. I am a private man, and I don't want my life publicised," he answered smoothly._

" _So, what do you do?" Her mother drilled._

" _I'm a police officer, like Red here. We are partners."_

 _Her mother barked a laugh. "You have a pet name, my dear? Does what you do not even warrant the use of your name?" She accused. "It's bad enough that you had to disgrace our name with your goals of becoming an officer, but now they don't even know your name? You should have become something successful like dear Phoebe. She at least spent her time becoming a top defense lawyer."_

" _Red is not a put down. In the force, a nickname is a title, a badge of honour of a type. Each nickname has a story behind it. Maisie got her's by taking down a jackass more than twice her size," Will explained. "And being on the force is a privilege. You have to be hard-working, be willing to work long hours and have enough courage to put a gun on your hip each day and know that you might have to use it, or you might have one turned on you. How many times have you been shot at trying to protect a child, an innocent?"_

 _Maisie stared at Will with giant eyes filled with gratitude. In this house, no one had ever stood up for her against the opposing force of her family. She knew her and Will had become close in the year they had known each other, but she now understood, in that moment, the depth of their connection. He was willing to protect her; even if it was from her own family._

" _Is that a new voice I hear?" A voice, rough from years of wear, called from another room._

" _Yes Grandma Rose, I brought someone to visit," Red called back._

 _A few moments later, an older lady, with her white hair tied in a bun and pierced through with what looked like knitting needles, entered the room._

' _Maisie, my dear sweet child, it has been too long," she welcomed, opening her arms to the girl who sat huddled at Will's side. She hadn't noticed at the time, but through the interrogation with her family, she had pushed herself further and further into Will's strength. But now, seeing her grandmother, she found her own strength to make her way over to her under the weighted glares of her aunt and mother._

" _Grandma Rose, it_ has _been too long. Merry Christmas," Maisie wished into the woman's shoulder, breathing in the scent of sugar that always seemed to follow her grandmother around._

" _Merry Christmas, my dear."_

" _Is there any help you need with dinner mom?" Maisie's mother asked, finally shaking herself out of the shock of Will's words to her._

" _Just to set the table, but I think Maisie and her guest can manage. I want to speak to him myself," she smiled, taking Maisie by the hand and leading her out of the room, gesturing for Will to follow._

" _Oh Grandma Rose, you came just in time, I didn't think I could handle much more of that," Maisie whispered in the old lady's ear._

" _They always give you a hard time, but you're perfect my dear, and don't you ever change," the lady giggled and continued her way down the hall._

 _The rest of the dinner went smoothly, or as smoothly as it could, with the only conversation being chilly small talk. Maisie's mother glared at Will through the meal, as if he alone was preventing Maisie from fitting her mold of the perfect daughter. Maisie looked to her grandmother, gaining courage from her silent strength. And Wolf only had eyes for Maisie. He examined her body language as she faced her mother's questions, hating the way the strong woman he had grown to know, shrank beneath the onslaught of disappointment that her mother slung at her. By the time dinner was done, he was ready to pull a Red and lose his temper._

 _He shared a look with Maisie as they were getting ready to leave and understood what she wanted before she even had to ask. "I'll be in the car," he stated. "Take as long as you want." Walking away to leave Red and her Grandmother alone._

" _You keep that boy safe," her grandmother warned. "He might not look like it, but I know men like him, one day he'll need someone to look out for him. You promise me you protect him as he did for you tonight."_

 _Maisie took in her grandmother's tone and was shocked to find she was serious. "I promise," she swore. "Always."_

'I'll protect you Will. Always," she promised to the flowers she still held, before walking over to the kitchen to find a vase to put them in.

Alice returned home to find Maisie asleep on the couch, the book she picked out for her to read to Diana, opened on her lap. She carefully removed the book and covered her with the blanket that was folded on the back of the couch.

"Goodnight Red," she whispered, before making her way to her own room to sleep.


	4. File for Friendship

Maisie woke to the sound of her phone ringing and the gruff voice on the other end ordering her to "get her ass down to the department to explain." Now, Rob Erkens was a man who prided himself on his level headed nature, so to have him yelling at her, she must have done something to shift his moral compass. And if his tone was any suggestion, it probably had something to do with the files she had requested earlier in the week.

Scribbling a quick note to Alice, she made her way downtown, where, when she entered her Chief Officer's office, she got an earful.

"What were you thinking Red? He's your partner."

She sighed and shifted to one foot. "So this is about the file."

Throwing the file in question on the table, it flipped open to display the driver's license picture of Gwyneth Taylor. "This is not your business Red," Rob lectured.

"It _is_ my business! He's my partner and I don't want anything to happen to him," she argued.

"Has she ever done anything to have you suspicious? Has she ever once tried to harm Wolf in anyway? Damn it Red! She owns her own bakery called Who's the Muffin Man down on Drury street. She's not a threat," he countered.

"Why does everyone think that she's good for him?"

"Because she's never done anything to show us she's not."

"Ugh," Maisie groaned. "Not you too."

"What does that mean?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"Why do you think she's so good for him? No person should be allowed to be that sugar coated. It makes you start to question what she's trying to cover up with so much sweet."

"Or maybe, you're just jealous you have to share Wolf," he accused.

"First Alice, now you. What is it with you people and thinking that there is something going on between Wolf and me?"

"I never said there was."

"Can I see the file. Please," Maisie begged, changing topics to allow her cheeks some time to cool.

Rob gave her a disapproving glare before once again picking up the file. "This could tear your friendship apart you know. If he sees that you don't trust him, he'll be hurt, because he trusts you more than anyone."

"Then I guess I won't let him see it."

"Only till the end of the day. That's all I'm bending the rules for you. And you'll owe me," Rob finally submitted under the weighted stare of Maisie.

Lunging across the desk, she pulled him into a hug, which was kind of like hugging a log with how stiff he was, but she didn't care. "Anything. Anytime. Anywhere. You ask it and I'll do it," she promised, grabbing the file from his hands, turning to walk out the door.

"Please be careful, I care about Wolf too."

"Always," she responded, leaving the room with the file tucked under her arm.

… and abruptly slamming into a solid wall of muscle. Will secured her from falling with the two thick arms he wrapped around her waist, pulling her flush against his chest.

"That is not how you catch a woman," Maisie breathed, not bothering to extract herself from his arms. She felt Will's deep chuckle rumble through their connecting bodies.

"Where you going, Red?" Will inquired, releasing Maisie.

Stepping back, she waved the file in front of her. "Rob just asked that I take these lab results back to Alice to double check. Something to do with inconsistencies in the blood sugar counts or something."

Will narrowed his eyes. "Why'd he ask you?"

Maisie sighed. "I was pestering Rob about Thanksgiving dinner again. I'm going to get him to make those mashed potatoes again like he did last year if it kills me; they were to die for," she explained, the lies rolling off her tongue.

Will stared at her for a while before answering. "They were pretty good," he finally admitted. "Here, let's go together."

Maisie smiled, and linked her arm through his. She could tell that he was still angry with her for snooping, but he had mostly gotten over it. Because that's what you do when you're friends: you trust each other. Maisie felt the red hot burn of betrayal that radiated from the file, but she kept it so hidden with her determination, that she would never show how much it stirred the guilt in her belly.

Arriving at the door to Alice's lab, Wolf pushed the door open. "After you," he slurred, sweeping his arm in a grand gesture in front of his body.

Laughing, Maisie made her way into her friend's domain. "Alice, my sweet. I have something for you," she called across the room.

Alice lifted her head from the work she was doing at her desk. "I thought you bailed on me this morning," she mocked, placing a fluttering hand over her heart. "I couldn't believe that I had been abandoned by my one true friend."

"I'm sorry, I had some work at the office I needed to grab," Maisie admitted, giving Alice a stare that she hoped she'd understand.

She didn't seem too, and before Alice could open her mouth to contradict her, she shoved the file into her opened hands. Staring directly into her eyes, Maisie spoke every word carefully. "Rob asked me to give this to you, some inconsistencies in blood work or something."

Alice squinted her eyes but took the file. Opening it, she gasped, before closing it again.

"What's wrong?" Will worried.

Alice waved her hand before fixing her glare on Maisie. "I was just surprised is all. Tell Rob I will have this back to him later today."

"Sure thing. We're still on for lunch right?" Maisie asked.

Looking to the file and back to her, Alice responded, "Yes, you and I have some things to talk about."

"How _was_ your date last night Alice?" Will wondered.

"Good enough that I hope to have a second," she responded. "Now shoo, I have work to do."

"See ya later."

"It's a date, sweet cheeks."

Alice glared at her over her mug of tea that she had deliberately steeped and mixed without saying a word.

Finally having enough, Maisie slammed her own cup of coffee on the table. "I don't know why it upsets you so much. Actually, I don't know why it upsets everyone so much."

"Because Wolf and you are both friends, and anyone with eyes can see that the friendship between you guys is unique and no one wants to see it broken."

"I'm not breaking it. I'm trying to save him."

Raising the mug to her lips again, Alice took a sip. "That's what you keep telling everyone, but no one else can see what you see. I was okay with following them around town. I was okay with stalking them to lunch. But running a background check on her? Isn't that a little extreme, Red?"

"I thought you said you were with me until the end."

"I want to be Red, but I think you're taking this a little too far."

"Can I at least see the file. I only have it until the end of the day. If I don't find anything, then I'm done. I'm finished. I'll drop the issue. But, if this does contain some sort of information. Then I'm using it. I don't know why I don't like or trust Gwen, but this might tell me something."

Alice studied Maisie's face for a long moment before sighing. "You're not going to give this up, are you?"

"Not while I still have some tricks up my sleeves."

She hesitated. "And you swear, if this turns up nothing, you'll stop and let the cards fall as they may."

Holding out her fist, Maisie raised a pinkie. "Pinky promise."

Alice locked pinkies with Maisie, securing her promise, before ducking down to retrieve the file from her bag.

"You're the best, Alice!" Maisie sung, reaching for the file that was extended over the table.

"Just remember," Alice reminded as she handed it over. "You promised."

Tucking the file into her handbag, Maisie looked at Alice with accusing eyes. "And what about you Missy?"

"What about me?"

"You haven't told me anything about your date. So spill," Maisie scolded.

"Well," Alice started. "He was cute."

"I know that, I saw him last night. I want to know the details."

"Fine. Fine. Well, he was the perfect gentleman, brought me flowers, opened the car door for me, pulled out the seat for me at the restaurant. He didn't treat me like some piece of ass he wanted, but as a lady he wanted to get to know."

"That's always sweet," Maisie complimented. "So what happened?"

"Well he brought me to this really fancy restaurant. I got to order lobster, so I am so glad you had me dress up. And when we got to talking about our jobs, he wasn't squeamish like everybody else. He even asked for me to explain further the proper way examine the stomach for its contents. He listened and asked questions and generally seemed interested in what I do."

"I'm seeing a second date in your future," Maisie teased.

"I hope so," Alice sighed. "And the best part was the kiss he gave me when he dropped me off."

"What!" Maisie exclaimed. "I thought it was one of your rules of dating that you don't kiss on the first date. So spill."

"Well, he was an expert," Alice swooned.

"An expert at using his tongue, I bet," Maisie laughed. The blush that crawled up Alice's face answered her question. "He was!"

Alice's face burned bright under the accusation. Maisie just laughed at her predicament.


	5. Into the Dragon's Den

**Chapter 5- Into the Dragon's Den**

The first couple pages contained nothing of interest. Gwyneth Taylor was born on March 21st, 1990 to Amanda and Rod Taylor. She graduated from the Rosedale's Bakery school four years ago and opened her own bakery Who's the Muffin Man soon after. There wasn't much else until she started on the financial statements. They were long lists with numbers and Maisie could feel the ache behind her eyes beginning to take hold. The more she studied the numbers, the more they seemed to dance along the page. 'Who am I kidding,' Maisie sighed, rubbing her thumbs into her temples. 'I don't even know what I'm looking for.' Groaning she dropped her head onto her desk and just lay there with her eyes closed. The longer she sat here, the more chance that Will could walk back to his desk, so with another groan, she hefted her head off the pillow of her arms, closed the file and tucked it into her bag. If she couldn't understand the numbers, then she was taking them to someone who would. Standing, she grabbed her bag, and made her way to the one person who she knew would help her.

"Where are you going?" Will's voice startled her out of her stride, causing her to jump.

"I forgot my wallet at home, just going back to get it," Maisie replied, turning to find Will standing by her desk with a couple file boxes in his arms.

"Do you want me to come with you?" He asked.

"You seem to be busy, don't worry," she stated, looking to the boxes he was carrying. Maisie knew how much Will disliked her walking around the city alone, he always made sure, he, or somebody else, was with her. Walking towards him she places a reassuring hand to his arm. "I'll be fine, be back before you know it."

He gave her a skeptical look. "Are you sure?"

"William, are you saying you don't think that I'm a big enough girl to take care of myself? I promise you, I won't let anything happen to me."

Taking a deep breath he relented. "Fine, but if you're not back in an hour and a half, I'm coming to find you."

"Only if you take me out for dinner afterwards," she smiled.

"Sure thing Red," he agreed, picking the boxes up he had put on Maisie's desk to talk, and turning to walk away.

~~~

The Dragon's Den was Cleric Talon's office. It was dark, with only the light from the monitors that lined the walls to brighten the room. Numbers scrolled along the screens in a seemingly random pattern, but the golden eyes of Cleric himself followed them with ease. Maisie tapped on the door frame, pushing the door further open, and the rushed tapping on the keyboard that sounded from inside seized.

"Who's there?" He growled, the Dragon hated having been disturbed from his work.

"Cleric, sweetie," Maisie softly sighed, hoping to sweeten up the man inside. "Can I have a moment please?"

"Oh," he sighed, turning back to his work and starting again. "It's just you, Red."

The numbers resumed their scrolling and Maisie got lost in them once again. "I was wondering if you could look over something for me," she began.

Without stopping, he looked to Maisie, fingers flying over the keyboard. "Look over what Red?"

"Well you see, I am doing a background check on this person and I don't understand the financial statements in here. I was thinking it's numbers, and you do numbers, so maybe you would help?" She rushed, finishing her statement as a question instead of the statement she had meant for it to sound like.

"Isn't there someone at the station that can do this for you?"

"Well, let's just say this is off the books."

Finally stopping his work, he turned and squinted those golden eyes of his at her. "And why would I want to help you?"

"Because I happened to be in possession of the first edition of Batman and Robin, with the misprint in the title, and it's in mint condition," Maisie claimed pulling the comic out of her bag.

With every word Maisie had stated, Cleric's eyes widened. He was almost salivating by the time she had revealed the comic to him. Hands reached for it. "Nah, nah, nah," Maisie warned. "You say you'll help me first, and then I'll give it to you."

"Where did you get it?" Cleric demanded, crossing his arms with a scowl.

"Well a year ago, I received it as a thank you from a man who I saved from a mugging. Took a bullet for him. I don't read comics, or even know much about them, but he assured me that it was valuable, and by the way your drooling, I'm guessing he was telling the truth."

"You have yourself a deal, hand over the comic and I will look at these sheets," he relented, almost tearing the comic from her hands. Cradling it, he placed it delicately on the desk next to him, while Maisie retrieved the financial statements.

"So what am I looking for, Mais?" He asked.

"Anything out if the ordinary. Anything that looks suspicious, or raises any red flags," she explained.

"Give me an hour."

"You got forty-five minutes. I have a Wolf threatening to chase me if I'm late."

"Fine, but I want coffee."

"I'll be right back," she replied, turning to the door and pausing before she exited. "And thank you."

She didn't get a response, the Dragon was already up to his elbows in his precious numbers.

His coffee sat forgotten on the table by his new comic as he reviewed his findings one last time.

"Sooo…?" Maisie inquired, twisting the red ribbon tied in her hair.

"Come over here," he beckoned. Pointing to a payment on one page, he circled another on the next, and the next, and the next. "Every month at the same time she had a payment of $8000 paid from an untraceable account." He tapped some keys, and a map popped up, "it was sent through multiple accounts, tracing across the globe." They both watched as a red line bounced from one continent to another.

"Can you find the origin?" Maisie asked, leaning over the back of his chair.

"Not in forty-five minutes, but give me time and I might."

"Will you do it?"

"Hmmm," he thought. "I guess. I want to find out too."

"How long?"

"A day. Two tops. I pride myself on what I do."

"Of course you do," Maisie laughed. "Anything else?"

"There was one thing. There are uniformed withdrawals from the same ATM two days after the deposit."

"Are they on the same day each month?"

"The 6th of every month the deposit happens, and the 8th the withdrawal occurs."

"So this weekend!" Maisie gasped.

"I thought that would perk your interest," Cleric smiled, warming to the tiny brunette that bounced behind him.

Maisie hugged him around the back of his neck, "You're the best, Cleric!" Glancing at her phone she gasped. "Oh my God! I have fifteen minutes to make it back to the department," grabbing a pen off his desk, she leaned over his shoulder and scribbled her number on the notepad in front of him.

"Call me later when you find something."

Cleric just watched her hips as she walked out his door. "Damn," he whispered.


	6. Sugar Sweet

**AN:** **winterprincess** **\- You are the best! Thanks so much, I really love my characters too; it's almost as if they write themselves. I really hope you enjoy this next chapter**

Maisie arrived back at the station to find a pacing Wolf stalking the front entrance.

"Red!" He barked as soon as she entered. "Where were you? It doesn't take that long to get to your house and back."

"Will, honey, I got a little held up with a call from my mother," she held up her hand to fend off his next question. "And no, I don't want to talk about it. It was just another one of her routine calls to rub in the fact that my perfect cousin Phoebe won yet another case."

"I'm sorry," Will consoled, stopping his pacing and giving Maisie a look full of warmth.

"Don't be," she smiled. "It's not like you told her to be a cold witch with me. Anyways, I'm starved. You ready to go?"

"Sure thing, Maisie."

Linking arms with him they both walked out of the building. The cold air bit at them as they made their way further down the street towards their preferred restaurant. The Three Bears was a small, comfort food, diner a couple streets down from the department. It was unknown to most tourists, but a popular hangout for locals looking for great home cooked meals. Maisie and Will had discovered it a year ago, when they ducked in for shelter during a freak thunderstorm. Now, they try to visit once a week.

When they entered, the warm air enveloped them in its embrace of baked goods.

"Maisie! William! Come in, come in! We saved the table in the back for you. I had the feeling you would be coming in today," The boisterous voice of their host boomed upon spotting them.

"Ellie, you didn't have to do that," Maisie claimed, embracing the blonde haired hostess that greeted them. Ellie Orson was the owner of The Three Bears, which she ran with the help of her husband, Trevor. "How's the little bear cub doing?"

"Her teeth are just coming in, so it's been constant crying, but I handed her off to my mom today, so I have the night off," The plump, blonde laughed. "Here, come. Sit down and eat."

Maisie and Will followed the owner through the crowded restaurant, to the secluded back corner booth that they preferred. It sat next to the kitchen, and was quieter than the rest of the room, giving it a more private feeling.

"What do you two want tonight? We have that chicken pot pie again today that you love, Maisie. And I think Trevor was trying out another fried chicken recipe if that's good for you William. Oh, Trevor will want to see you," Ellie prattled. "He has these new pictures in his wallet that he just loves showing to people. Here, let me put these orders in, and he'll be right out."

"Ellie, don't disturb him from his work. We can come at a different, less busy time to see you guys."

"Nonsense," Ellie waved off. "You both are family, and family is never a distraction," and with that she turned into the kitchen and disappeared behind the doors.

"Oh Ellie," Maisie sighed, turning back to Will. "We should visit more often. I never see them enough. And the young one will soon be old enough to be allowed to do some more adventurous things and… Oh!" Maisie paused. "I really do need to invite them to Thanksgiving next weekend."

Will laughed. "The kid is barely half a year old, you won't be doing much with her for a while. Also, if they are coming, have Trever bring over those cheese buns with him."

"Of course you're only thinking about the food," Maisie teased.

"Well that is the best part."

Before Maisie could reply, a hand landed on her shoulder.

"Well my cheese buns are the best in town," the man bragged, walking to the side of the table.

"Oh Trevor, don't encourage him," Maisie sighed.

"Well, I'm not going to turn down phrase. But, I do wonder how this came up in conversation."

"I would like both you and Ellie to come to Thanksgiving next Sunday. All our friends are coming and I would love for you to come. Bring your little cub, too, I love seeing her."

"We'll be there, any reason to be with you two. Talking about my daughter, I have some new pictures. Just look how big she's grown!" the man excitedly announced, pulling out the pictures he had stashed in his wallet.

Maisie examined the pictures before handing them to Will. "Ersa sure is growing into a big strong girl, just like her father."

"He doesn't need to be any more proud," Ellie frowned, walking out of the kitchen and wrapping her arms around his waist. "His chest is inflated enough."

"Oh, Goldie, she's just the apple of my eye."

"And what does that make me?"

"You are the key to my heart."

"Well that just killed my appetite," Maisie interrupted, spoiling the moment between the couple.

"You would understand if you ever dated anyone, Maisie," Ellie countered.

"What does that mean?" Maisie grumbled, crossing her arms.

"I'm saying you have a very attractive man sitting across from you that any woman in this restaurant would love to date, and you call him a friend. Maisie, you have no experince with love."

"I've been on dates before."

"Two," Wolf cuts in, looking up from the pictures.

"Three."

"The kid you 'married' in elementary school doesn't count."

Maisie sighed, looked away from the couple holding in their laughs, and her partner who was laughing with his eyes. "Fine, then two."

Trevor barked a laugh. "That's my cue to leave, I'll have your meals out in a couple of minutes."

"I have to leave too, there is a family with a couple of crying kids and people are starting to complain," Ellie announced, she too walking away.

"So what if I haven't dated much," Maisie mumbled.

"They're just worried about you. You should get out more."

"I could say the same to you."

"I am dating someone."

"Something," Maisie muttered.

"We are not starting this again," Will stated, narrowing his eyes at his partner.

They were saved from an argument, when then their food arrived. Steam drifted from their plates, delivering them a mouth watering aroma.

"Mmmm," Maisie moaned, talking around a mouthful of food. "Trevor out did himself this time."

"He did, this recipe is a keeper," Will agreed, grabbing another bite of his chicken.

They ate in comfortable silence, both savouring the flavours of their meals. As their plates were cleared, a waiter served them dessert. Well, he served Maisie a dessert of two pie pieces, and Will a black coffee.

"Compliments of Mrs. Orson," the waiter told them as he placed the plates on the table.

"We must come here too often," Maisie laughed, digging into the pie that was set before her.

"I just hope they let us pay this time," Will sighed, pulling out his wallet and pulling two twenties from it.

"Don't wave that around, you'll attract her attention," Maisie hissed between bites.

Ellie never allowed them to pay for their meals, so they started discreetly leaving money for her to find. Everytime she saw them doing it though, she forced them to take it back and walked them to the door to assure herself that they didn't pay. "Family doesn't pay," she would always insist, but Will and Maisie always found a way to repay them if it was by taking care of their kid for a night so they could have a date alone or by leaving them a twenty dollar tip in the jar. Today, Will carefully folded the money and tucked it under his plate so that the busboy would find it when he cleared the dishes. Ellie would be mad when she found out, but this was the game they played.

Finishing her pie, Maisie stood and grabbed her purse. "Ready to go?" She asked.

"Yup."

"You sure you payed enough?" She made sure.

"Extra, like always," Will assured her, standing also and taking her arm. As they walked to the exit, they looked around the room for their blonde friend, only waving when they saw her busy with another customer. Ellie made the 'call me' symbol as a farewell, before returning to her conversation.

Maisie stood by the door looking out into the night, where snow had began to fall. "Do you have gloves?" She asked her partner.

Digging into his pockets he retrieved a pair and handed them to her. His gloves dwarfed her hands, but they still carried the warmth from his pocket, so she didn't complain. "Ready?" His rough voice questioned.

"I am now," she replied, resting her hand at his elbow, as he stuffed his into his pockets. Together, they made their way out into the night towards their homes.

Maisie walked along the street. Hands that were encased in gloves, were shoved into her pocket, the scarf that was wrapped securely around her neck covered her nose and mouth, and her hat was pulled firmly over her ears, yet, she was still cold. The snow had stopped falling sometime in the night, but a layer now coated the city in a blanket of white. She pulled the note from her pocket and read it again, _371 Drury Street_. Glancing at her surroundings she exhaled, a white cloud of her breath forming in the air. 'Only a couple more blocks," she comforted herself with, as she continued on her march down the street.

A couple of minutes later, she found herself in front of the bakery she had been looking for. _Who's the Muffin Man_ had been artfully scribed in gold across the front window, a display of cookies, cakes and pies resting beneath it on a table draped in red.

Taking a deep breath, she made her way inside, stepping foot into the territory of her enemy. As soon as she crossed the doorway, she knew there was no turning back. Maisie had come for answers, and answers were what she was going to get.

"How may I help-" the perfectly manicured lady who was standing behind the counter started, pausing mid sentence when she saw Maisie step inside.

"I came seeking a truce," Maisie apologised. "I know that I haven't been the most… accepting of your relationship with Will so far, but I have come to ask for a fresh start."

"What made you change your mind?" Gwen inquired, narrowing her eyes at her rival.

"Will. He and I have been partners for a long time and I don't think _I_ was ready to give up my time with him, but you haven't done anything wrong. So I figured, I would give you a chance."

"I don't see why he needs your approval on who he dates," Gwen snapped, losing the falsely sweet attitude that she wore with Will.

"Look, I know you don't like me, I'm not the most fond of you either, but let's at least try to make this work. For Wolf," Maisie begged. Gwen glared at her, no intention of making this easier for her. 'So help me God, please let this not go on much longer, or else I might strangle her,' she prayed to the heavens before trying again. "This is a nice shop you have here, it must be quite popular during the holidays."

"Not the most stable income, but it's enough to get by."

"Well, everything smells delicious," Maisie tried.

Gwen sighed, losing the face of disgust. "Want to try some? I just baked a batch of gingerbread," she asked, turning into the back room without waiting for an answer.

She walked back out a couple of minutes later holding a clear bag with two finely decorated gingerbread men nestled inside. "A sign of truce," Gwen stated, handing the bag over. "I would like to start over again too."

Accepting the bag, she examined the cookies before placing them in her bag. "Thanks," she said, extending her hand towards the baker.

"I'm only doing this for Will," was her response as she grasped the offered hand.

"So am I," Maisie replied, turning towards the door. "You treat him right," she called over her shoulder before disappearing out the door.

Digging the cookies from her bag, she studied the delicate frosted clothing and painted on hair. 'She might be evil, but these cookies smell divine,' she thought before taking a bite of the mouth watering snack. Absolute perfection.

By the time she had gotten back to the department, she had finished the cookies, and was left with only the empty bag which she stuffed in her pocket.

As she entered the building, her phone rang.

"Officer Maisie Rowan," she answered.

"Red, it's Cleric. I have that information you wanted."

"Really?"

"I am good at what I do," he moped.

"I know you are. I'm just surprised it took this long."

"It's only been a day!" The Dragon exclaimed.

"But you just finished telling me how great you are. You're not going back on your word are you," Maisie teased.

After not receiving a response she sighed, looking at her watch. "Well, it's almost six, so why don't you pick me up and we can do dinner while you tell me what you found," Maisie suggested.

"As a-a d-date?" Cleric stuttered.

"I never said it was a date, but sure. A date it is. See ya in an hour darlin'," she said, closing the phone on his stammering. "It's a date."


	7. A Not so Date- Date

**A/N:** **Winterprincess** **\- You must be reading my mind. And Maisie is 24 while Will is 28 and Alice is 26, so Will isn't too much older than Maisie, and Alice is also older than Maisie but younger then Will.**

"I have a date tonight," Maisie bragged to her partner.

"You have a what?" Will quizzed, snapping his head up from his work to study her with those piercing eyes of his.

"Oh, don't give me that. You and Ellie both told me to get out more yesterday," Maisie snapped.

"We were just teasing you. Don't go on a date with someone just because we told you to."

"Well, if we are going by your logic, it's not technically a date."

"And why not?" Will asked, brows furrowing together in thought.

"Because your words to me last night were, 'the boy you married in elementary school doesn't count,'" Maisie laughed, seeing Will's eyes narrow even more.

"Not that Cleric guy," Will groaned.

"What's wrong with him?"

"He's moody. And he calls you Mais, you hate shorting your name."

"I've known Cleric for years now, we grew up together. He gave me that nickname when we were ten, I guess it just stuck."

"Where are you going?" Will sighed, changing subjects.

"Where ever he wants to take me, he's coming in an hour," Maisie replied, turning away from his desk. "And be civilized. I went to visit your girlfriend today. To apologize, so please don't do anything stupid."

Maisie turned her back on Will's growl and continued on her way to Alice's lab.

Will's POV

He couldn't believe that she still hung out with that guy. Cleric was a good guy, treated her nice and everything, but they didn't pair well. Maisie was too bubbly for the moody computer nerd. "They just aren't good for each other," Will muttered under his breath.

He'd been sitting at his desk for forty-five minutes, fuming with an unknown anger, since Maisie told him she had a date. In those forty-five minutes, he had successfully done nothing but open the file he was supposed to be working on. Growling, he slammed his hands on his desk and stood up, causing the people around him to jump. He headed off in the direction of the one person who could help him. Alice.

Alice's lab was a clutter of vials and beakers. Metal shelves ran the length of the right wall, lined with an assortment of complicated machinery, half of which Will didn't even have a clue to what they would do. The back corner had monitors tacked to the wall, currently showing x-rays of, who Will assumed, the man lay under the blood stained, white cloth on the metal table, which lay in the center of the room. A small table sat next to it covered in knives, scalpels and other tools that would have assisted Alice in her autopsy. Alice herself was seated behind her desk, petting the purple cat, who was curled on top of some papers that were scattered there. She didn't look up as he entered the room, too absorbed in her work to register his presence.

Clearing his throat, Alice jumped, staring at him with startled eyes.

"Wolf, how nice of you to join me. You haven't been in here since the day Maisie broke your nose," Alice laughed.

"I been in here since then," Will argued.

"Ah, yes. But only under the protection of Maisie, you don't come to visit on your own."

Will didn't answer, only glared at her with his dark, stormy eyes.

Alice pretended she didn't notice them. "And so, I'm forced to assume, that you haven't just come to catch up, but it has something to do with Maisie. If I were to guess, I bet it is about this date she's going on."

Crossing his arms, Will continued to stare. "And why do you think that?"

"Because I know I haven't done anything to upset you. The only person who can get under your skin so easily is Red. And the way you're acting, you're frustrated about something," Alice deduced.

"I can't believe she has a date," he finally admitted.

Alice gasped. "Why? Don't you think she is allowed to have a date?"

"No, I-"

"Don't you think she is attractive enough to catch a man?"

"Yes, but-"

"Is there something wrong with her that would make her undesirable for men to date?"

"No! Of course not, it's-"

"Then why exactly are you surprised?" Alice finally asked, silently wishing she had a camera to capture how red Wolf's cheeks were. One didn't fluster a Wolf so easily.

"I'm jealous!" Will snapped suddenly.

Alice laughed. "Then I think it's time to do some snooping," she suggested. "It's not like Red and I didn't do it to you. But first, I have to help her get ready. You stay out of the way and go work, we leave in an hour."

Will sat at his desk and tried to finish the report he was working on before, with the same amount of success. The words danced across the page and his eyes refused to catch them. 'Only a little bit longer,' he encouraged himself with, only a little bit longer before he could find out what was going on between Maisie and Cleric.

'Speak of the Devil,' he internally cursed as the man in question walked through the doors of the office, flaming red hair as obnoxious as ever. Cleric lifted his head from staring at his feet and locked eyes with the man shooting swords at him, before promptly dropping his head again.

Will sighed as the man shuffled over to him, not once did the man look up from his inspection of his toes. 'Pathetic, really,' Will thought to himself. 'What could Maisie ever see in someone like this?'

"It's been a while," Cleric started, his hands shaking as he shoved them into his pants pockets.

Will didn't answer, simply staring holes into the top of his head, demanding him to look up. After a minute of tense silence, Cleric raised his head to meet Will's eyes. He saw a challenge.

"Oh," Cleric added, gaining confidence from Will's silence. "You haven't changed a bit. Still hiding behind a girl to do the talking for you."

Will sat in silence, but by the minute narrowing of his eyes, Cleric knew he had scored a hit.

"If you want to say something, you should grow a pair, and say it to my face," Cleric demanded, refusing to back down from the duel Will had drawn with his stare.

Still, Will made no sound to object to Cleric's digs, only tensing his shoulders even more, hands slowly curling into fists. It didn't go unnoticed by his opponent.

"And to think she speaks so highly of you," Cleric finished, golden eyes gloating his victory. He tore them away to stare over Will's shoulder at a new arrival.

Will gave Cleric one look, and he growled at the appreciation he expressed. Only one person would cause Cleric to drool. Maisie.

He turned to face his partner, his eyes widening at what he saw. In one word. She was sexy. She had on a green V-necked sweater, that dipped a little lower than Will thought was necessary. The swells of her breasts accented by the silver chain that hung between them, hiding the charm at the end from view. Her acid-washed jeans hugged her hips, displaying her curves. She was a picture of soft, womanly seduction, and Will wanted to establish a 'hands off' policy. Her hair fell in soft curls around her face, tamed by the red ribbon she always wore.

Hips swaying, she walked towards them; Will listening to the soft clicking of the heeled boots she wore, which extended her legs and accentuated the ass that he saw Cleric watching. He was plagued with an urge to smack him.

"Cleric, you ready to go?" Maisie asked, coming to rest in front of the two.

"Wow, Mais. You look fantastic," Cleric complemented, offering his hand.

Wolf stayed a statue next to them, unable to formulate speech. Maisie stared at him with curious eyes, before turning back to Cleric and taking his presented hand.

"See you tomorrow, Will," Maisie said, walking away, hand in hand with Cleric, to the door with Will glaring daggers at their backs.

Will groaned as they left his sight, dropping into his seat with defeat and rubbing his eyes with the palms of his hands. 'I'm so screwed.'

It was half an hour after Maisie and her date left that Alice walked up to Will's desk and told him they could leave.

"Did you think she looked nice?" Alice asked, wide eyes full of faked innocence.

"You are a Devil, Woman," Will growled, standing up and putting on his jacket.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Alice replied, a smug smile playing on her lips. "I was just getting her ready for a date."

The look that Will pointed in her direction would have had most trembling in their shoes, but Alice pretended she didn't notice and walked towards the door, not waiting for him to follow.

Cleric had taken Maisie to a restaurant a couple of streets away from the department. It had a quaint, cozy atmosphere that was disturbed only by the scowl that Will wore. He noticed the way she reached across the table to grasp his hand before throwing her head back and laughing. He noticed the way her eyelashes fluttered against her cheeks as she looked down, a blush crawling across her face in response to something he said. He noticed the way she hung onto his every word, as if each sentence was a string of pearls and she wanted to catch every precious bead. Sudden anger swirled like a storm in his stomach, his hands clenching into fists with the urge to create a dent in the wall next to him. Cursing, he took another drink of the beer that he ordered. She could date whoever she wanted, he had no claim on her.

"Oh Wolf, wipe that look off your face. It's not attractive," Alice lectured, watching the struggle Will had as he reasserted his neutral expression.

"What are we doing?" He sighed, finishing his drink.

"We are waiting," Alice responded. "We wait and see what happens."

A growl burst from his throat. A shocked Alice glared at him. "You are not an animal. Control yourself!"

Will looked away before waving over the waiter again. "Another, please," he demanded, holding up his empty mug.

The rest of the meal, Will fought waves of anger that rolled through his stomach. This hunger that clawed at his gut, made him feel nauseous. By the end of the night he felt sick. Then Maisie did the unexpected, she leaned over the table, her breasts pushing against the fabric of her sweater, and kissed Cleric. Will saw white. The blinding pain of betrayal sawing the strings that tied his sanity in check, until they laid as a mass at his feet. He was lost in the waves of emotion that were battering his body against the rocks of the cliff he had dived off. As Maisie kissed Cleric, Will became aware of one thing.

He loved her.


	8. The Truth About Dinner

**A/N:** **winterprincess** **\- You'll find out later about Cleric and why he is how he is, also, Alice is my Editor's favourite too!**

Maisie leaned back in her chair as Cleric ordered their wine from the waiter. For as long as Maisie had known him, Cleric had always worn his hair in a style most would call bed head. That's not to say he didn't try to tame it with some gel tonight, it just was that his wild locks were just that, wild. They sprang from his head in a mass of curls that danced to their own music. The brilliant orange colour of them, just adding to the character he was.

"What are you looking at, Mais?" Cleric smirked.

Maisie blinked away her thoughts and focused on the man seated before her. Leaning forward, she brushed a curl out of his eye before placing a hand on his arm. "I was just remembering how much of a nerd you were when we first met. You were the cutest thing, with this afro of flaming hair, and wide eyes that drank in the colour of the world."

"Well, I would like to think that I am much cuter now than I ever was then. I have grown up a lot," Cleric smiled.

Maisie threw her head back and laughed. It was a laugh that came from the belly, a true laugh that held no abandon. "You have not. The other day you were salivating over that comic book I gave you."

"That wasn't a comic book, that was a work of art," Cleric defended, trying to give Maisie a stern look, but the smile that tugged at his lips gave him away.

The waiter arrived at the table with the wine in an ice bucket, he placed it on the table before uncorking it and pouring them both a glass. They ordered their food and waiter left once again.

"So, what have you found for me?" Maisie asked, delving right into the point of this dinner.

Cleric sighed and pulled some papers out of his jacket pocket. Unfolding them, he placed them in front of Maisie, smoothing out the creases. The pages were full of lines of computer code, numbers and letters mixed together along the page.

"And I'm looking at...?"

"You asked me to find out the origin of those deposits into Gwen's account."

"I know what I asked you, but I don't speak computer."

"Well basically, I backtracked the accounts that were routed through thousands of different accounts across the globe. Every deposit of money done online creates a trail. There are ways to cover it, just like there is in the real world when you are tracking your prey," Cleric explained, his golden eyes alight with the pleasure he got when he explained his trade.

"So you followed this trail?"

"I looked for the clues that people leave when they cover themselves. Random lines of code, web pages that have no reason for being there, that sort of thing. I just follow them across the web as they formed a trail to follow."

"The point of this?"

"The point is I found where the money was coming from," Cleric answered, turning the page to display a logo for a company. It was a gingerbread man enclosed in a cage.

"That is not a way to grab people's attention," Maisie commented on, leaning over the papers to closer examine the picture. Her nose scrunched up as she looked back over the page of computer code.

"You know you're pretty cute when you are concentrating," Cleric noted.

Maisie blushed, and looked down into her lap.

Cleric smiled and continued. "That's because it's not a real company. The account is made in this company's name, but I did my research, this company isn't on anything I could find on the web."

"So a fake company is supplying Gwen with money every month?" Maisie asked, her eyes locking with Cleric's.

"I couldn't find anything on the web about it, but I still have an idea of what to do," he answered.

"Are you going to tell me or do you want me to ask for it?" Maisie sighed, rolling her eyes.

"It's not on the web, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's not real. I may be able to find it on the dark net."

"The dark net?"

"It is the black market of the internet. If you want to buy an organ, hire a killer or be smuggled across a border, the darknet is where you will find it."

"So, all the illegal acts of the world are conducted on this dark net?"

"Basically."

"And you think that this company will be on it?"

"Well it won't hurt to look. It would explain how the company had the money to pay her each month," Cleric replied, picking up the papers again, refolding them and stuffed them back in his pocket.

The waiter arrived with their food, interrupting their conversation. Over the rest of dinner, Maisie and Cleric laughed at stories they remembered from their childhood.

"You so did!" Maisie laughed, choking on the wine she tried to swallow.

"Well at least I didn't try to dye my hair when I found out my celebrity crush preferred blondes," Cleric retorted.

Maisie groaned and dropped her head into her arms. "I looked like a sun bleached zebra, half my hair blonde and the rest brown."

"You made quite a picture," he agreed, reaching over to rub her arm.

Maisie stood and pushed her way from the table. "I'm not going to stand to be laughed at," she teased, turning to make her way to the washroom. "I'm going to the bathroom and then let's leave, it has been a long day."

Maisie made it about two steps before her vision swam before her and she felt the room spin. Her head felt as if it had been filled with cotton, a dull pounding filled her mind.

"Mais! Mais, are you alright?" Cleric inquired.

Maisie only then registered the arms that had caught her before she fell and lead her back to her chair.

"I must have had more wine than I thought," Maisie giggled.

"Let's get you home then, Mais," Cleric sighed.

As he stood to leave, extending his hand to her, she grabbed him and pulled him closer to her. A noise across the room caught his attention and when he turned his head to look he noticed Will and Alice sitting at the table in the back. Will staring intently at the position Maisie held over the table.

"Thanks, for helping me tonight," Maisie whispered, not noticing the man across the room.

Cleric turned back to her and smiled. "I would like to collect my payment," he whispered, closing the distance between their lips before pressing them together. The kiss was short and sweet, but Maisie was quick to push him away.

"Next time, you ask before you kiss," Maisie lectured, taking his hand and leading him towards the door, head starting to throb in time with her pulse.

Maisie leaned against the bathroom counter, her vision once again spinning out of control. 'I really _must_ have had more wine than I thought,' Maisie reflected.

"So what did he say?" Alice asked over the phone.

Walking into the living room, she collapsed onto the sofa. Her head pounding with the movement. "He said that the money was coming from some fake company."

"Did he say fake?"

"No I said fake. He said he may be able to track this company down on the dark side or something."

"The dark net?"

"Sure, the dark net."

"And that's it? That's all that happened on the date?" Alice questioned.

"Well not exactly," Maisie delayed, rubbing her temple with her fingers to ease the ache that was throbbing behind it. "He did kiss me."

"You don't sound that excited sweetie," Alice commented.

"I'm not. Cleric is a friend."

"Just like Wolf is a friend?" she teased.

"Yes, Alice. Like Will."

The doorbell rang, causing Maisie to sigh. Heaving herself to her feet, the urge to puke shot through her, but her stomach soon settled and she continued on her way, wincing as the doorbell rang again.

"So, are you saying you would kiss Wolf?" Alice quizzed, as Maisie opened the door to face her visitor.

Maisie forgot about the conversation she was having with Alice as she stared into Will's eyes.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Wait! What?!" Alice squealed through the phone, reminding Maisie of the conversation she was having before she opened the door.

"No! I mean no!" Maisie quickly responded, taking the phone away from her ear, ignoring the arguments that Alice yelled through it.

Will raised an eyebrow at the exchange and Maisie stepped aside to allow him in. "You know Alice," was her explanation.

Maisie groaned as the door closed, the sound sending another sharp pang into her head.

"You okay?" Will asked, stepping towards her.

She waved him off, walking to the kitchen, Will following behind. "Just a headache."

Alice on the other line was forgotten about as she placed the phone on the counter.

"Why are you here?" She finally asked when Will showed no indication of speaking.

He looked away before responding, "I have a question."

Giving him a look, she opened the fridge and pulled out a beer, offering it to him. "You look like you could use a drink."

He took the drink without hesitation, opened it and took a swig.

"Will?" Maisie prompted again.

Taking a deep breath, he turned to her. "What do you think we are?"

Maisie's eyes widened. "Partners. Friends. Very close friends," she replied.

Will frowned and looked to the ground. "Friends," he mumbled.

"Why?" She cautiously inquired.

"Because," Will started, taking another drink from the bottle. "Because I wanted it to be clear between us before you started to date Cleric."

Shocked eyes stared at him. "Me," she giggled. "Date Cleric? No, definitely not!"

"But you went on a date with him," Will defended.

"As a friend. Cleric is not the guy for me, trust me," she laughed, giggles erupting from her belly.

"You held his hand."

"Because it was annoying you."

"You kissed him!" Will finally spat.

"I didn't kiss him, he kissed- wait," Maisie stopped, her laughing subsiding. "How did you know about that?"

The blush on his face was almost comical as he went back to inspecting his shoes.

"You didn't follow me, like you told me not to do to you!" She exclaimed, causing another spike in her headache.

"Well, I guess," he muttered, hunching his shoulders to become less of a target.

Maisie's eyes softened. "Is this all about the kiss?" She asked. "Why would you care?"

The words he wanted to say bubbled up his throat but he swallowed them down, never would he tell her. He would always put her feelings in front of his, because she deserved better than he could ever give her.

He leaned towards her, the seductive curves of her breasts, were tempting his attention. His eyes followed the silver chain that was wrapped around her neck to the point it disappeared between them. He lifted his hand to lift the chain and tug out the charm.

Maisie held her breath as Will played with her necklace, so close to being indecent. She was scared that the movement of a breath would fracture this vulnerability that he was showing, she was scared he would stop.

When the necklace was freed from its prison, Will dropped it as if it burned him.

"Where did you get that?" Will gasped, taking a step back.

Maisie looked down at the charm that was now exposed. The silver bullet lay against her chest, sparkling in the dull light in her kitchen. She picked it up to examine it closer, as if it would tell her its secrets.

"Alice told me to wear it. She said it was unique and every girl needed something to make them stand out."

Will cursed under his breath, turning away. He was stopped by the light touch on his arm.

"What does it mean to you?" Her hesitant voice asked, her hand unmoving until he turned back.

"It's a reminder."

Maisie reached behind her neck and undid the necklace, letting the charm fall onto her palm. She didn't know all the demons that Will hid, but she did see that this bullet was causing old ones to resurrect.

"I won't wear it anymore. I'm sorry, Alice didn't tell me what it meant," she apologised, placing the necklace on the counter.

Will was torn between the need to tell her and the want to keep the dead, dead. Sighing he reached for the bullet.

"A couple years before you joined the department, I was the new kid," He started. "I wanted to help people, give kids like me a chance. I didn't want them to struggle to live with their abusive father, and a mother so focussed on her next high, she was willing to sell her son as a sex toy to do it. I wanted to make a difference."

Maisie didn't say a word. Will had told her of his childhood before, when he was ready he would continue. The silence stretched on as she waited for him, lending him her strength in that silence.

"One of my first jobs was a call we got reporting an argument with threats made down in the bad part of town. I was ready for my chance, when we got there we found a man standing with a bottle in one hand and a gun in the other. We were too late for his wife, she lay face down in a puddle of her own blood, but we could save the child.

I guess I saw the man as too much like my own father. So naïve in this world, that I thought a badge would make a difference. When I saw the man raise the gun, pointing it at that little girl, I froze. I remembered the times when my father raised a gun at me and I froze. And I got to watch her die with those wide eyes of accusation pointed at me. I failed, and that little girl died," Will looked down at the bottle in his hand before lifting it up and downing the whole thing.

Maisie watched her partner try to swim in the memories that were drowning him. The greedy hands of the dead reaching to drag him further down before he had the chance to breathe.

He looked up at her with wide eyes, glassy with unshed tears. The man who had been her rock, her unbreakable wall, was crumbling before her as he relived this nightmare. So she did what she thought she should; she walked around the counter and wrapped her arms around his waist, tucking her face into the warmth of his chest.

"You didn't fail her, her father did. You were unable to save a child who had every right to live, but that doesn't make you bad. If you had failed her, you wouldn't have showed up to witness her death. You wouldn't still carry her story with you, even though it kills you a little more each day. Each day, you give her a little more of the life she had stolen from her because you live it for her. That doesn't mean you failed, that means you tried," Maisie whispered.

Will's arms pulled her closer to his chest, as she burrowed closer, he rested his chin on the top of her head. They stood for a long time that way, Maisie holding Will to comfort him and Will holding her so he didn't drown.

"But I didn't want to live," Will finally stated. "That's what that bullet means. I tried to kill myself that night. I shot myself, but I couldn't pull the trigger at my head. I tried to shoot my heart because that's the part that broke."

Maisie did nothing but pull him even closer. To have her partner broken, was slowly breaking her too. She didn't have the words to express to him her sympathy. He would have hated her if she had. But, he was slowly shattering and she needed him to stop before he was unable to be fixed.

She looked up at him to only find empty eyes staring at her. She wanted to erase the frown that marred his brow, wanted to smooth the memories from his mind, she wanted to help him carry this weight. But she couldn't. But, there was one thing that could help.

She raised herself onto her tip-toes, until her eyes were level with his chin. 'Will," she breathed.

He tilted his head towards her and as he did, she pressed her lips against his. One of his hands wrapped around her waist while the other anchored the back of her head. She tasted the soft planes of his lips with her tongue before slowly sucking his bottom lip between her teeth. He was immobile beneath her, but he didn't halt her slow exploration of his mouth. Maisie nipped his lip before opening her mouth, breathing her invitation against his lips. He responded by opening his and allowing her tongue to enter his mouth. With every sweep of her tongue, she tried to express how she felt. With every movement of her lips she tried to project the pride she had for being able to call him her partner. The kiss continued until the need to breathe exceeded their need to be connected. Maisie nestled her face into the crook of his neck as Will pressed his cheek into the top of her head.

"Your heart isn't broken to me."

 **This chapter was requested to me by a friend but I am so happy with how it turned out. And in case you couldn't tell, Will is a little on the drunk side. :D**


	9. Visions

**A/N: Italics are Maisie's dreams and normal printing is what is going on around her. I had such fun writing her dreams, I hope you enjoy them :D**

 **Sorry for not posting earlier but I was on vacation in Mexico, so I guess I will have to say Happy New Year now!**

 **Winterprincess:** **Thanks! I love it when you message me, I really enjoy review! Last chapter really focused on Wolf's character and this one is more about Maisie! Enjoy! :D**

" _Your heart isn't broken to me."_

Will tilted his head down to look at Maisie, she gave him a small smile before she groaned and slumped forward. Will caught her shoulders as her legs collapsed, her body limp in his arms.

"Maisie! Maisie!" Will called. "God, Maisie! Maisie, wake up!"

Her body convulsed in his arms, eyes blindly staring at his face in emotionless panic. She desperately tried to open her eyes to dispel the darkness that clouded them, but every time she tried, the world still swam in the shadows. Her body trembled again, barely aware of Will's frantic cries. She was floating, swimming through the webs that shackled her mind in those clouds. The arms that clutched at her body doing nothing to keep her from wandering. A tiny pain brought her back to her body, a blossoming pinch behind her temples. It grew until claws were dragging paths across her scalp and nails were being driven between her eyes. The pain swelled in a swirling storm, racking her mind with its power. She screamed. Her voice broke as the pain in her head met new heights, until she was left only whimpering.

Will clutched her to his chest, one hand supporting her back, the other desperately brushing through her hair in an act of comfort. Her screams sobered him from the daze he had been put in from her kiss and from his drinks. Her screams gutted him. He wanted to puke, but there was nothing to heave. So lost in her pain, he almost didn't hear the worried calls from the forgotten phone.

"Maisie! Will! What's happening?! Oh God, is she okay? Will! Will! William! Pick up this God damn phone right now! I need to know what's going on. I'm in my car, on my way. Damn it Will! Pick it up!" Alice ranted on the line.

Alice's voice finally broke the silence that descended upon his world since he had to restrain Maisie's body from hurting herself. She'd bucked herself against his arms in a crazed attempt to leave the pain behind. She'd torn at her head in a struggle to remove the source of the torture. He watched as she struggled against his arms to free herself from the torment. And then nothing. She stopped moving, the remaining twitches of her body nothing more than memories of the pain they were trying to prevent. As she settled, with only the occasionally murmur, he finally heard Alice's voice.

"Wolf I'm halfway there. What is happening?!"

Reaching over, to disturb Maisie as little as possible, he picked up the phone that had fallen to the floor sometime in the chaos.

"She collapsed. What should I do?"

"Collapsed how?"

"How the _hell_ do you think? She just fell," Will growled, pulling Maisie against his chest tighter, another convulse making its course through her body.

"Wolf. Start listening," Alice lectured. "Is she convulsing? What sort of pain did she seem to be in? What was she doing before she collapsed? Was she complaining about anything else before fell?"

"Yes. Her head, and she had a headache earlier."

"What's she like now?"

"She stopped screaming, but she's perspiring and shaking."

Silence greeted him on the other side of the phone.

"Alice?" He probed, fear starting to turn to panic in his chest.

"I'm almost there, just keep her comfortable until I get there. Try and see if you can get her to drink any water. Lay her down to open her airways and make sure she doesn't choke."

Will felt the careful placement of her words, knew she was hiding something from him. He went to dig deeper, but a small whimper from the girl in his arms made him lose his breath. He needed to do as Alice said and get upset later. He had to help Maisie first.

Carefully, he picked her up from the tangle of limbs they had become on the floor. As he made his way across the floor to her bedroom, he gazed at the soft curves of her face, the plane of her nose, those plump pillows of lips. As soon as he thought it, he groaned and looked away. Kissing was not allowed.

Laying her on the bed, she moaned from the loss of his heat. She curled upon herself as he stepped away, as if seeking warmth from her own limbs.

So cold. Her body was so cold. When the heat had sunk into her body from the chest she had pressed against, she had felt safe, calmer than before, as if the warmth was keeping her grounded. Then the warmth disappeared, and with it, it took her comfort. She curled tight to herself and her stomach gave a heave. As she burrowed into her arms, it decided to roll again. A thunderous storm started in her gut, as her stomach tried to push its way up her throat. She felt that warmth envelope her again as her stomach finally had its way and emptied its contents.

She felt the sensation of flying again. Her stomach protesting the movement and she heaved. She continued to do so until her stomach had nothing left to gift, and still it tried. The warmth was running hands through her hair, rubbing circles across her back. The warmth was whispering, words she couldn't decipher brought her that peace again. It continued as she floated in her world of grey. It wiped the damp from her forehead and breathed sighs into her neck. She felt the soft stabbing at her temple, but it was nothing like the pain it was before. It was more of a dull throbbing. Uncomfortable, but bearable.

Will watched as her eyes twitched behind their closed lids. He ran his fingers down her cheeks and onto her neck. He had changed her clothes into something more comfortable, and cleaner. He had undone her hair and brushed it out with his fingers, until it fell in soft curls around her face. And now, he sat with her between his legs, every time he tried to move, she would whimper and tears would pool in her eyes. As he sat there, she curled into him, as if he could protect her from the pain.

As he waited for Alice, he studied the girl in his arms. He studied the way her slim neck slowly turned into the curve of her breasts. He observed the way her chest moved with her uneven breaths. And he memorised the slopes of her lips. The lips that pressed pleasure into his. The lips that had gifted him the sympathy that he craved. The lips that he worshiped with his tongue when he had finally kissed her back. The lips that would damn him to hell if anyone could read the thoughts they stirred in him. Alice couldn't come soon enough.

 _Will walked towards her dressed in nothing but those black jeans that she loved, but always pretended she didn't notice the way they cupped his ass. His eyes bore into hers, full of need, full of lust. Will strode towards her with a purpose, one to claim her and make her his._

 _He reached his hands towards her, settling them on her hips and pulling her closer. She rested her hand on his stomach to feel his abs beneath it, its heartbeat calming the erratic beat of hers. He bent towards her, and began to nuzzle her neck. Soft kisses were pressed in a line up the smooth column of her neck to the corner of her mouth. Moaning, she stayed motionless for him to continue. His tongue ran a line across her lips, asking for entrance. She parted her mouth to grant him his wish. His tongue swept into her warm cavern, drawing a duel with her own. Her mind was locked on the wicked whispers his mouth made against hers. The thoughts that were running through her mind at a million miles a minute only a couple of moments before, evaporated at the first taste him. Never did she want the kiss to end. So drunk on his passion, she only desired to touch him, to examine the hard planes of his body with her hands. His breath quickened to match her own as the soft caress became something more. Wandering hands soon found purpose and she wanted to memorize every inch of his skin. She wanted more._

 _And then he pulled away. She gasped at the loss of contact and reached for him as he took a step back. His expression gave nothing away as he took another step away. Her lips felt bruised and swollen from his kiss, and she touched them, still feeling the weight of his mouth. Reaching for him, he finally turned, retreating back into the swirling mist that had surrounded them sometime during their kiss. The weight of what they had done finally settled in her stomach and she stared, wide-eyed, at the place that Will had disappeared into. They had kissed. They had finally kissed._

"Nausea, vomiting, sweating, headache, abdominal pain; Will, these symptoms aren't those of a cold," Alice started, her voice logical and flat.

"How would you explain it?" Will growled, looking down at the girl curled in his arms. She twitched occasionally in her uneasy rest .

Alice sighed and finally turned to face him. "She's poisoned, Will," She admitted in a soft voice as if she was trying to soothe a frightened animal. "Symptoms of colds don't show up out of the blue like this. We would have known earlier if she was sick, she would have been drowsy, not herself."

The sick feeling of dread curled its wicked claws tight around Will stomach. He was watching the world flicker like an old television. Colour and grey. Colour and grey. The world tilted one way then the other. Her words nothing more than panic. "Poisoned?"

"I don't know by what though. I have to look some things up, but I have a strong feeling of what this is."

"She going to be okay?"

Alice who had looked so sure before deflated at the question. Worries clouded her eyes as the seriousness of the problem weighed on her. She handled in her hands the life of her best friend. She chose who lives and who dies in this small house in the middle of the country. And it weighed heavily on her shoulders, but her eyes hardened as she made her resolve. "I'll make sure of it."

 _The Mercedes sweated sunglasses and bank notes onto the pavement. Bleeding money of privileged life over the carpet of the middle class. Its driver lounged carelessly across the seat, dark sunglasses taming the slicked backed curls of his hair. That half smirk twisted his mouth into a pout that promised pleasure. He swung his head, fixing those molten golden eyes onto her. She felt the heat of his stare as a seductive suggestion as he lazily devoured her body with his eyes. Those twice damned golden eyes._

 _With a twist of his hand, he beckoned for her to come closer. Come closer she shall, she still had a bone to pick with him about that kiss. She started forward crossing the street in a haste to begin her lecture on proprietary._

" _There's my sweet little angel," Cleric purred, rough voice causing her breath to catch in her throat. She'd never heard him talk that way and cursed her body for the electricity that sparked through it._

" _I'm nobody's angel, and definitely not yours." Her voice could have cut glass with the edge that she embedded into it._

" _That hurts a man's pride, Mais." Hands crossed over his chest in the image of a wounded heart._

" _You make me sick," Maisie cursed. She couldn't believe that audacity that this guy had. Never, in all the time she had known him, had Cleric ever acted like this._

" _I act the way you want me too," he sighed taking the sunglasses off his head and examined her through the tinted lenses. "It's your dream."_

 _She looked down at her hands and then out across the street that they were on._ A dream? _she thought, then she could do anything she wanted. Lifting her hand, she stuck him across the face, her hand leaving an angry red mark across his cheek._

" _I guess I deserved that," he said, rubbing his cheek with his palm. "You hit pretty hard, never thought you'd have it in you."_

 _She didn't really understand the anger she felt. The burning hate that twisted it's hand around her heart._

" _Why'd you kiss me?"_

" _Who wouldn't? You're beautiful."_

 _A blush coated her cheeks at the compliment, but it wasn't the answer she wanted. "Cleric," her voice trembled as she raised her eyes to him, the fire that was burning in them slowly dieing, "why did I kiss him?"_

 _She searched in his eyes for her answer, but those golden eyes gave nothing away. Reaching for her, he wrapped his arms around her, just as he did when she was young and those boys in their class had once again kicked her in the shins and called her names._

" _Oh Mais, you don't have to run anymore," his breath whispered atop her head as she curled further into his protection, the door of the Mercedes the only thing keeping them apart. "The Maisie I know wouldn't back down from a fight, she would spit in the eye of the devil himself before she let anyone see her break."_

 _She tilted her head to look at him, a watery smile on her lips, to find him staring down at her pride in his expression. "Don't blame her, she didn't know how he would react."_

" _What?"_

" _Don't blame her, she didn't know how he would react."_

"I'm sorry," Alice apologised softly, looking up from the laptop she had been staring at. "I didn't know how you were going to react. I should have. I'm sorry."

Will looked up from trying to count the colours of Maisie's hair. "Didn't know how I would react about what?"

"Cleric's kiss. And the charm I guess, but you weren't supposed to see that tonight. I never thought you would come here and kiss her yourself. But mostly for Cleric's kiss."

"Why would you apologise for what that creep does?" Will growled, pulling the unconscious girl closer to his chest.

"Well," Alice started then looked down at the screen again. "let's just say it wasn't his idea."

Before he could respond, Alice stood and dug through her bag. The uneven, shallow breaths of her friend were beginning to worry her, with the rate of the progression of the symptoms, she feared she had little more than couple hours to find the antidote. Pulling out her stethoscope, she placed the cool metal on Maisie's chest. Distress pulled at her heart at the erratic heartbeat. She schooled her face to emote nothing but comfort.

" _Let only one of us know the true state of this problem,'_ " Alice thought, before smiling weakly at Will and turning back to her computer, fingers flying.

 _Alice and her sat at their usual table at Once Upon a Cup. The world continued around them, passing through the window that they sat beside. The heat from the cup of coffee Maisie had skillfully poured five packets of sugar into, worked its warmth through her hands._

 _Looking up she stared at Alice. "You know, I might regret asking this but, why exactly are you dressed like that?"_

 _Alice was wearing a skin tight bodysuit in black, with dark grey leggings and 6-inch stripper heels. Her thick blonde hair done in tight curls around her face, framing its softness. Dark sweeps of eyeliner rimmed her eyes in charcoal and her red lipstick painted her lips as perfect luscious pillows. What made the look were the black bunny ears that she wore with the white cotton tail._

" _Sweet cheeks, I got a date tonight with a hot surgeon."_

" _Okay. I get that. But really, a bunny costume? You look like the staff at the playboy mansion."_

" _My sweetie likes to role play. You should find someone Red."_

" _You know first, I really didn't need to know that and second, I'm single by choice."_

" _Sweetie, we all know if Wolf grew a pair, you would say yes, drooling like an idiot, the second he asked."_

 _A blush worked it's way across her cheeks so, she raised her cup to her lips to delay her answer. "I doubt I would say yes."_

" _Your love life is about as barren as a desert in the middle of a drought. Maybe a little change is good."_

" _Its an investment Alice. I save money every Valentine's day by staying single."_

" _Of course. Valentine's Day is the day you sit alone in your house pretending you don't have fantasies involving Wolf."_

 _Maisie, who had been in the middle of taking another sip of her over sweetened coffee, starting coughing. She was saved from answering when another figure approached their table._

 _The man wore the weird hat Maisie had seen in Alice's apartment, and a ratty jacket decorated in patterned patches. He also had on skin tight black jeans and worn green hiking boots, one laced in ice blue laces and the other in a pale purple. He offered his hand to Alice while the other dug into one of his pocket and pulled out a pocket watch attached by a chain. Looking down at it he gasped. "I think you're late my bunny. Late for a very important date."_

 _Alice placed her hand in his as rose from the table. "Oh my Mad Hatter, I must have lost track of time. I hope I don't have to be punished."_

" _We'll see."_

 _They swept out the Cafe with not even a backwards glance at Maisie._

" _Have fun," she muttered under her breath, taking another sip of her drink._

 _The edges of her vision started to blur with darkness. Shadows seeped their way through the cracks in the floorboards, twisting their way around her legs and feet._

 _Her chair clattered behind her as she stood, looking around the room in a panic at the other people in it. Not one looked phased by the growing shadows, slithering across their feet. The tendrils of twilight caressed her thighs at they made their way further up her body. Panic planted its seed in her brain and she couldn't help but to poke and prod at it with her mind, blossoming it into a flower that poisons her. Her mind pulled out a machine gun and fired fear, angst and terror into her body which revolted under the onslaught. The rabbit of her heart ran faster, beat harder, as the shadows dragged its fingers slowly across her exposed midriff. The scream that her mind begged her body to release was blocked by ragged gasps of air, causing her vision to swim in dimming blackness._

"Wolf! Hold her steady, she can't move or I'll miss the vein," Alice barked, filling the syringe she held with a thick clear substance.

Worried eyes fixed their gaze on her hands. "And this will work?"

"We have to hope," Alice countered, stepping towards the convulsing body of her friend.

 _The shadows wrapped its arms around her neck, choking the remaining breath from her lungs. Her vision swirled once more before twilight descended upon it. She felt the darkness wiggle its way into her open mouth, slide its thick tentacles down her throat. Her racing heart banged relentlessly against her rib cage, begging for oxygen, before it gave one last heave and sputtered to a stop. The shadows slowly lowered her body to the floor, cushioning it against death._

"Alice! ALICE! Her heart stopped!" Will cried, his hand dropping the stethoscope it had been holding to hold Maisie's face.

"Shit!" She fumbled through her bag before removing a smaller syringe and jabbing it into her neck, emptying its contents. "Wolf start chest compressions," she ordered, leaning down across Maisie's face and closer to her ear.

"You're not allowed to die. Not when he needs you," she whispered.

 _She suddenly felt a tugging, starting at her chest and pulling her up. She resisted, but the tugging was insisting and she found she forgot why she wanted to stay in the shell she clung to. Slowly, she rose from her body, looking back down to stare at her crumpled form._ She looks so feeble _, Maisie thought, the urge to help her grew in her stomach. She drifted over to one of the many people still enjoying their meal in the Cafe. She touched one man's shoulder._

" _You have to help that girl."_

 _The man looked at her with burning gems of flames. His hand rose to stroke her face, but froze inches from it, stilling before turning grey. His fingers cracked, then split, fracturing up his arm. With a soft finger she touched the man's hand, and it crumbled to dust. The rest of the man cracked and broke apart, until he was nothing more than a pile of ash on his seat. The girl that once sat across from him looked at her confused._

" _You're not allowed to die. Not when he needs you." The girl grinned. Her teeth wiggling in her mouth until they turned into snakes, each on slithering their way out of her mouth and onto the table, leaving the girl as an empty husk. She crashed to the table, and like her partner, crumbled to ash._

 _Maisie turned and looked around at the remaining customers. The room spun and she sunk to the floor in a pile of limbs._

" _Someone help her! Please!" She cried out._

 _Not one head turned to look._


End file.
